Reading, music, hiking in Colorado (the higher the altitude, the happier I get--I'm originally from Nebraska, and the Rockies tend to serve as our vacation home in that state--we like seeing things higher than our head once in awhile :]).

First Lord of the Rings reading experience:

An abortive attempt at age 11 on the passionate recommendation of a friend. Tried again at age 12, and burned through Fellowship and the Two Towers until I found Gandalf was alive, then proceeded at a more leisurely rate. I find the language often so intoxicating, I have to read certain paragraphs over and over again, until I'm done "tasting" them. I must have read the books several times a year until age 20 when I took a very long break until the movies came out, loved them for the most part, and reread the books 6 more times in 2 or 3 years. I'm on another break--I go in spurts.